Strict restrictions on when supermarkets can deliver to people's homes will be scrapped to help retailers meet the increased demand due to coronavirus.
Crisis talks were held earlier this week between supermarket bosses and Environment Secretary George Eustice - after customers reported having to wait a week for a delivery slot - to find a solution to the increase in vulnerable people who are going to need home deliveries over the coming weeks and months.
Due to COVID-19 people are expected to self-isolate to stop the spread of the virus and to protect themselves due to age or pre-existing health conditions, reports Mirror Online .
At the moment panic-buyers are reportedly stripping the shelves of essential household items including toilet roll, pasta and hand sanitizer.
But as the number of people self-isolating rises there will be an increase in the number of people relying on delivery services.
Current rules mean that deliveries are banned overnight so that vehicles do not disturb residents.
The government "will temporarily relax the enforcement of restrictions" to "give greater flexibility," a spokesman confirmed this week.
Deliveries are also partly hemmed in by complex restrictions on when firms can turn up at your door - including in "anti-social" hours like the early morning or late at night.
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Now the government can also widen the ability to make deliveries using a seldom-used power under the 1998 Competition Act.
Shoppers concerned about having to self-isolate amid the spread of coronavirus in the UK have sparked Christmas-level demand for some items.
Tesco has limited the sale of goods such as pasta and long-life milk, while a number of major stores are joining them in restricting sales of hygiene products such as hand sanitiser.
But shoppers have been assured there is "no need" to stockpile and warned against doing so, after images emerged of empty shelves in stores in some areas of the country.
The supermarket is fully focused on ensuring the safety of customers, suppliers and colleagues. Customers are asked to shop as they normally would.
The business has seen an increase in demand for deliveries and is at 'full capacity' to support these.
